Thousands raised in hours for family of autistic boy William Wall
Thousands of dollars have been raised in a matter of hours for the Victorian family who is grieving the loss of their 14-year-old son William Wall, who was found dead on Wednesday following an extensive search.
William told his family he was going for a run on Tuesday morning, but he never returned.
The search for William, who had high-functioning autism, ended in tragedy when he was found dead in bushland at Yarra Junction on Wednesday afternoon.
Now, a neighbour has set up a GoFundMe to help the Wall family, with almost $20,000 being raised in just hours.
“The community is struggling to come to terms with this tragic loss of such a beautiful boy, we couldn't possibly imagine what the family is going through at this time,” the account says.
“As we want to respect their privacy as much as possible Yarra Valley notice board has expressed how the community wants to help in some sort of way, to take the financial strain off the family at this time.”
The GoFundMe was set up by Nikki Callaghan, who explained the money raised would go to William’s family so they can grieve without having to worry about bills or funeral expenses.
“I am only a neighbour but have added Will’s mum as the beneficiary so as soon as she has time to accept all funds will go directly to her,” Ms Callaghan explained.
“This GoFundMe is just to help them out with the cost of funeral or anything else they may need at this difficult time, so they don't have to worry about money and focus on being together as a family.”
William’s death has been deemed as not suspicious by the police.
His father, Shane Wall, said it was part of William’s routine to get up and go for a run.
William, who had high-functioning autism, was found near his family home.
Earlier on Thursday, Mr Wall wrote a brief Facebook post, commemorating his son and thanking the community for their support.
“I wish I had better news regarding our beautiful and caring son and brother, William Wall, unfortunately he is no longer with us,” Mr Wall wrote.
“We don't know how to begin to thank everyone who searched and supported us in the last 48hrs the list is endless.
“We are so fortunate to live in an amazing and supportive community.”
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